How Can You Love?
by AnelieMPetrova
Summary: Born Anelisia Petrova but goes by Anelie is the daughter of Nadia Petrova and has been beside her mother looking for Katherine since the very beginning. Katherine is in Elena's body and while Nadia is out with Mia, Anelie and Katherine have a heart to heart understanding. One-Shot; Takes place during 5x12; Please Review, This Is my First Story So It Would Mean So Much!


"Do you Love her?"

"What?"

"My mother—do you love her? And please…be honest."

I was taken aback, caught off guard and dumbfounded. Did I love my own Daughter, of course I did. She is a part of me. I turned from the window and looked at the five-hundred year old teenager sitting on the bed farthest away from where I was standing, "Why are you asking me that?"

"Because she loves you and yet she has never met you…it's strange to me," she sighed softly

I began to nod as I wet my lips, "Well…yes, I do love her, and I love you too." I informed

"How is that possible?" she whispered her head lying on top of her knees that were curled up to her chest, "How is it possible to love someone that you have never _met_, whether you be blood or not?" she grazed her fingers along the stitching of the hotel's bedding

I was not quite sure where my granddaughter was going with this but I went along with it anyway.

"It is a different kind of love. I held her…inside of me for months. I fell in love with her before she was even born. Nadia being ripped from my arms…it devastated me. I never healed from it."

"So…when you said that she was never going to see you again…and when you said that you would rather rip your own heart out…than do any Mother-daughter bonding with her…you were lying—weren't you?"

I nodded once, "Things are different now; I'm not dying anymore…I won't ever die. We have Eternity now."

"Yes…" she smiled softly, "I suppose that we do..._have_ eternity." She tightened her grip around her legs, "And me…how can you love me? We only met a couple days ago while you were lying on your death bed—you did not even know of my existence so tell me…Katerina" she spoke softly as if about to tell a sad story, "…how can you love me?"

I sighed softly, "I love you…because you're my family—my granddaughter…I _loved_ you the moment I knew who you were. You, just like Nadia, are a part of me, my closest decedents—,"

"Blood…is not thicker than water,"

"I know…I know that blood is not thicker than water but I could not help but love you, you both are my family; I love you because I have ever only ever dreamt of meeting my grandchildren and watching my daughter grow up. Five-hundred years and that was the only other thing on my mind besides trying to survive." I admitted, "I love you," I said again, "And I always will."

She looked up at me, our brown eyes locking, "What about Elena?"

"What?"

"You say you love my mother and I because we're your decedents…Elena is your decedent…and mine yet…—yet you do not love her, why?"

Maybe she was where Elena received her compassion from…it surely was not Isobel.

"Elena and I never liked each other…I did terrible things that I am not proud of to her and she only forgave me for them while I was on my death bed. Pity is what she gave me. Our feelings towards one another were very mutual and they stood from the very beginning."

She brought her eyes back down to the bee-line dark purple stitching on the bedding, drawing her fingers over it, "I see…it's a pity…I wonder where things would be if the both of you had started off on the right foot…became friends even being that the two of you are doppelgangers."

I chuckled dryly, "Honestly…I've caught myself wondering the same and maybe we would be friends and maybe I would be in my own body as a Vampire had I not let my selfishness get in the way," A moment of silence fell between us, I looked down at Anelie's hands on the bed as she followed the stitching a faint smile was held on my lips. Finally after a couple moments Anelie looked up at me again, a smile formed on her lips creating a bigger one to form on mine, "I may not know everything that happened but I know enough…and I understand your side and I see it. There is one thing I think that you should hear…from me as your granddaughter."

"And what is that?"

"If I were you…" she breathed out, "I would have done the same."

"You would?"

She nodded, "No doubt…yes, I would have."

I wasn't sure what to say. It was refreshing to have someone see my side of things and agree with them. For the first time in a very long time I felt happy and not just because Anelie could see my Point-of-View…but because I was here, in this moment, sitting with beautiful granddaughter who even being much like Elena Gilbert, stole a special place in my heart in this very moment that would remain forever.

Suddenly she wrapped her arms tightly around me burying her head in my chest, I was taken by complete surprise but I had instinctively hugged her back even tighter. It felt so natural holding her in my arms like this; to have her genuinely hug me and want to felt just as…god, there isn't even a word to describe the feeling it was so great.

"Katherine…"

"Yes…"

"…I love you too…"


End file.
